We're celebrating an all-American 4th of July today on Travel with Rick Steeves.

Hi, I'm Rick Steeves. We've got ideas for enjoying some of the iconic must-see parts of the United States

coming up in the hour ahead. We'll start with a sort of patriotic pilgrimage to our

nation's capital with help from our friends at the National Museum of

American History. There recently opened First Lady's exhibit takes you from

Martha to Michelle and it's attracting a lot of attention.

Then we'll get clued into one of the greatest shows on earth, the window seat view on your

next flight over the USA.

The author of a detailed guide to seeing North America from the air will tell us which flights are most scenic and what to look for to help you better understand the role the land itself plays in shaping our nation.

And a novelist who lives near the Grand Canyon will explain how the Canyon adds a certain spirit to the characters she writes about.

Here I am somebody who's in love with the Grand Canyon and I hope people can feel that through my characters.

There's a lot to explore from our nation's capital to the southwest.

Your window on America is coming up in the hour ahead on Travel with Rick Steeves.

From the patriotic inspiration you get from delving into our nation's history in Washington, D.C.

To the transcendent feeling you take home after a trip to the Grand Canyon,

as well as a bird's eye view of the land in between.

We're traveling the USA on today's trip. as a bird's eye view of the land in between.

We're traveling the USA on today's travel with Rick Steeves.

In this season of the 4th of July a lot of us are thinking about civic pilgrimages and if you want to make a civic pilgrimage the place to go is Washington DC.

We're joined today by two people from the Smithsonian Institution.

Melinda Machado is the Director of Public Affairs from the National Museum of American

History, and Lisa Kathleen Grady is the curator at the Museum of American History.

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